Suffocation

[Steve43]

Hi everyone, end of week 3 of coming off Paroxetine. Thankfully the brain zaps and dizziness have subsided, however the chronic insomnia persists. I also have developed a scary feeling of suffocation when trying to drift off to sleep. It's like my body forgets to breathe and then I start to panic. I try and tell myself than I'm not going to run out of air, but the physical symptoms are real and unpleasant. Has anyone experienced this and got any coping mechanisms which they share.

Best wishes

Steve

[js1803]

I have experienced this quiet often and I still get it from time to time...

I even had a in-home sleep study done because it stressed me out so much, but everything was normal.

You need to calm down is all. It will take some time, but your sleeping will go back to normal.

Best thing you can do is tell yourself positive affirmations like "my body can take care of it self, breathing is automatic, I do not need to control my breathing, my brain will take care of it on its own. " or " I have nothing to fear, I will not stop breathing while I sleep because my body is in control of this automatic function"

Also, keep your room dark when you go to sleep, any light can cause you some stress.

Maybe take some Melatonin w/ L-theanine right before you go to sleep, or listen to some relaxing Binuaral 10hz beats.

When you learn how to relax before you fall asleep and convince yourself that you have nothing to fear while you sleep because you WILL not stop breathing at night, your brain wont let you, you will overcome this.

[Steve43]

Thanks JS1803,

I'll try and put the positive affirmations to good use.

Anyone else out there got any experiences or feedback they would like to share

Best wishes

Steve